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Home , Adam Smith, Jeremy Bentham

The Making of Modern International Realm: and international political theory from T. Hobbes to J. Bentham

European School of Political and Social Catholic University of Lille (France) 15-16 April 2021

Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679) and (1748-1832) are usually portrayed as two central of the British modern political and legal thought. With David Armitage’s Foundations of Modern International Thought[1], they also appear as leading figures in the making of the modern international political thought. In Armitage’s history, the couple “Hobbes-Bentham” delimits chronologically the formation period of the modern international political thought (1629-1832). In his attempt to justify his assumption, Armitage explains that he heavily relies on “a series of prior aetiological narratives, mostly within the disciplines of international and International relations, had also found them there.”[2] These narratives have led to the assumption that the divide between the internal and the external, the domestic and the foreign have participated to the foundations of modern international thought during that period. This account is a well-received description of modern international thought where Hobbes and Bentham both incarnate major figures in conducting central developments in modern international thought. However, this account tends to undermine the changes that occurred in the making of the international realm both conceptually and historically. The attempt of this workshop is to focus on the British tradition from Hobbes to Bentham (including , , ) in order to understand, through the articulation between economy and political theory, its unique contribution to modern international thought. Indeed, what sort of relations, developments, connections, continuities and ruptures take place in the fields of political theory, economy and international theory in the time period that stretches between intellectually active periods of (from 1629 onwards) and Jeremy Bentham (1832)? We ask, for example, what sort of relations can we see between the conceptualizations of and free markets? Is there a continuity on the conceptualization of sovereign , war, colonization and expansion? How do they think about economic interactions and interdependence in the aftermath of the birth of the Westphalian world?

Abstract may address one or more of the following areas. Contributions which do not fall under these categories – but nevertheless address the theme of the conference – are also welcome:

First axis: proto-theories of in modern international thought International commerce and in David Hume, Adam Smith and Jeremy Bentham Jealousies, glory, vanity in David Hume, Adam Smith, Jeremy Bentham Rich countries and Poor Countries economic exchange in David Hume, Adam Smith, Jeremy Bentham International private International commerce, and war International commerce, national bankruptcy , international treaties, commercial treaties Distance, global , local economy, imperial conquests Colonies Critics of empire Critics of

Second axis: Ruptures or continuity between early modern (Hobbes, Locke) & modern international thought (Hume, Smith, Bentham)?

Domestic economy and international economy Work, labour, population control, colony settlement, property property rights, land, regulation, law policy, bounties, , controlling foreign trade and Economic theories, modern , commerce State theories, , Banks, paper-money, financial plans and policies , of movement, borders international theory, of nations, international law

Paper proposals of maximum 800 words should be sent by December 20th, 2020 to: [email protected] [email protected]

Keynote speaker: David Lieberman is James W. and Isabel Coffroth Professor of at the Berkeley Law Faculty, University of California.

Each paper be attributed 45 minutes. The format will be 30 minutes presentation followed by 15 minutes of questions and discussion. The organizers of the workshop cannot provide financial travel support for speakers. For the participants, the organizers will provide catering, restaurant and possible financial support (hostel) for the two days of the conference.

ORGANIZERS: Benjamin Bourcier, Associate Professor in Moral and , ESPOL, Université Catholique de Lille (France). Mikko Jakonen, Adjunct Professor, Senior Lecturer in Cultural Policy, University of Jyväskylä (Finland)

This Workshop is part of the project “The Making of Modern International Realm in English Political Theory” funded by grant StaR (n°58465/7, convention n°18004740) provided by the Région des Hauts-de-France.